Since the advent of the modern telephone handset, which contained both listening and speaking apparatus, many devices in the form of handset adjuncts have been attached to the handset so as to allow the user full freedom of his or her hands, while carrying on a telephone conversation. To this end, a relatively modern device is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,556,762 which issued to Campbell in 1985. This invention conceives of a rigidly affixed (to the handset) curvilinear wire cradle having several pieces. A base piece which conforms to the shoulder of the user is rigidly affixed, by banding means, to the handset. Another piece, also curvilinear is wound about the user's neck and affixed to the main cradle frame through a hook-in-eye arrangement. An alternative embodiment conceives of a more stylized rendering of the cradle base, as well as alternative attachment means. In both embodiments, Campbell retains the main theme of the invention and offers no alternative to the neck-encompassing member. It appears, to one of ordinary skill in the art, that the invention cannot function sans a neck-encompassing element.
Art available prior to U.S. Pat. No. 4,556,762, is exemplified by U.S. Pat. No. 2,493,954, issued to Epstein in 1950. Epstein taught a shoulder conforming base to a cradle that pivotally engaged the handset. The ability of this invention to pivot somewhat, as the handset was cradled and snubbed between the user's shoulder and ear, fullfilled a long standing need in devices of this nature. Notably, and as an exhaustive search of the prior art has revealed, pivotability and latitude for head motion, in addition to shoulder motion, is rarely if ever, contemplated by inventors. It appeared to this inventor that no thought is ever paid to comfort, when developing inventions of this genre.
Recently, a telephone handset cradle that offers a modicum of comfort to the user, was brought to this inventor's attention. A resilient curvilinear attachment trademarked as Softalk, has been recently brought to the market by Practical Innovations, Inc. of Salt Lake City, Utah. This invention is comfortable in that it is soft and resilient. The producer claims that it will fit either shoulder comfortably; as one familiar with the art, the inventor would attribute this to its inherent resilence. It attaches easily by means of a form of adhesive tape that is affixed to the back or handset-receiving side of the invention. The Softalk attachment is extremely useful; but unfortunately suffers from the fact that, like all the prior art, it entertains no adjustability per se. Rather, it relies upon its collapsibility to afford what should be inherent design parameters, namely, adjustability for the tilting of the head from side to side as well as an adjustment for the variability in "nod" i.e., to-fro positioning of the head of any user.
To overcome limitations of the prior art, this inventor chose to depart from the traditional design theme found in this field and systematically provide an apparatus that would allow freedom of motion in the planes defined by head tilt and "nod" postures. All the while, it was necessary to keep in mind that the preferred embodiment must have a high degree of esthetic attraction. To this latter end, there has been provided a feature of the invention that serves a dual purpose--an element that achieves comfortable securement of the invention while it is in use, and which affords an engaging or "cute" appearance when the handset/invention is not in use.